Strictly's Darcey Bussell gives her verdict on this year's contestants

Darcey Russell reveals that she’s already drawn up her shortlist for this series

Darcey Bussell lets us in on a secret.

At the beginning of each new series of Strictly Come Dancing, she and her fellow judges sit down and make their own private predictions on who will reach the final of the BBC1 competition.

And while none of their shortlists are far off the mark, it turns out that Darcey has form when it comes to singling out potential champions.

“I think us judges have a good idea of who will be in the final from the start. The ultimate decision is down to the public, of course, but I have been quite lucky with my predictions…’’smiles the 48-year-old former prima ballerina, who sits on the panel with Craig Revel Horwood, Bruno Tonioli and, this series, new head judge Shirley Ballas (replacing Len Goodman).

Reflecting on her successful track record, she reveals that Louis Smith, the Olympic gymnast who won the 10th series of the show in 2012, stood out for her straight away.

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I think us judges have a good idea of who will be in the final from the start.

Darcey Bussell

“I called him from the beginning, which is funny because he went through some major downers. And even though he’s an athlete, no one knew whether he could dance. I saw his focus, though; it was written all over his face.”

Darcey reveals that she’s already drawn up her shortlist for this series – not that she’ll reveal who’s on it.

She does, however, pick out a handful of contestants she’s enjoyed watching so far.

“In terms of physical ability and the ability to focus, lovely Debbie [McGee] is great because she seems to pick up steps and learn very fast.

“Aston [Merrygold], Joe [McFadden] and Jonnie [Peacock] are all very quick, too, and Alexandra [Burke] has an unbelievable understanding of music and expresses that beautifully.

“I think Mollie [King] has all the ability, but probably doesn’t have the confidence just yet. And Susan is fabulous. I think her technique will just get better. We have a nice combination of different talents and everyone has something different to give.”

Such diplomacy is something we’ve come to expect from Darcey, who is known as Strictly’s ‘nice’ judge, and her encouraging feedback has become the perfect antidote to the put-downs of her acid-tongued neighbour, Craig Revel Horwood.

“That’s just me. I’m the good one!” says Darcey.

“I have a lot of empathy for the celebrities, because I still can’t fathom why they would even get on that dance floor and in front of the panel and a live audience of millions of people. The fearlessness you need to even go out there is incredible.”

She’s openly critical of the fact that a celebrity is thrown out of the competition in only the second week – this year, Holby City’s Chizzy Akudolu – and says it’s something they should overhaul.

“I think the least they could be allowed to do is three or four weeks. It just doesn’t give everyone that chance. It’s horrible to see someone go home so soon.”

Darcey’s gentler approach to the contestants also comes in stark contrast to new head judge Shirley Ballas, who has already proven outspoken – even openly disagreeing with Darcey on air.

But Darcey says she has nothing but respect for the champion dancer, whose nickname is ‘the Queen of Latin’.

“What she adds is essential to Strictly – if you didn’t have someone with Shirley’s background on the panel it’d be strange,” asserts Darcey.

“She’s fitted into the gap left by Len, to give that amazing history and knowledge of Latin and ballroom. If you lost that, the show just wouldn’t be true.”

Looking ahead to the rest of the series, Darcey, who’s now in her sixth year on the judging panel, says she’s excited for next weekend’s Halloween special, as well as the usual Blackpool extravaganza.

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Darcey is a former Principal of The Royal Ballet

The celebrities and their professional partners will perform in the famous Tower Ballroom on the weekend of November 18 this year and Darcey reveals that the entire crew will be letting their hair down.

“We always have a good boogie up in Blackpool. The whole crew – the pro dancers, the judges, the contestants – we’re all out, either at a nightclub or hotel bar, having a good time after the show.

“The problem is, you’ll find yourself next to somebody on the dance floor who’s three times younger than you, usually one of the professional dancers, and they’re really going for it… and you’re thinking, ‘Oh god, this is bad. I can’t keep up.’

”It’s hard to believe that Darcey reaches her milestone 50th birthday next year, and when asked what her secret is to looking so fresh-faced and youthful she tells us that it’s the fear factor of being on live Saturday night TV.

“I have to say that coming on Strictly does make me think, ‘I must keep fit, I don’t want to let myself go’.

In among her dance commitments, which include her role as president of the Royal Academy of Dance, she’s also found time to film a documentary on the legendary Fred Astaire, one of her heroes who inspired her career, which is due to go out on the BBC in December.

Right now, though, Darcey is entirely focused on Strictly, and talks openly about wanting to stay on the show for the foreseeable future.

“I once said to my 16-year-old daughter, Phoebe, ‘Would you be disappointed if I didn’t do Strictly?’ and she said ‘You must be crazy! You have to do Strictly. You always have to do Strictly,’” laughs Darcey, who also has a 13-year-old daughter, Zoe, with her banker husband Angus Forbes.